Or a sheep, a pig, ducks, rabbits......Not for our house, but through Heifer International. Last night we had 16 adults and 16 children from our church, St. Nicholas, at our house for a cookout. Guests made donations to Heifer International, and I am sure that we raised enough money to buy a goat, sheep, or pig. When we originally signed up to host a dinner, we said that we could have 12 people total at our house - somehow that turned into 12 families when the sign ups went out at church. We were a little nervous about hosting 32 people, but we decided most people would be understanding however it went. We ended up with nine families joining us, and it was great to meet so many people from our church. Joshua and Luke loved making all of the new friends as evidenced by his saying hello to everyone right after we walked up for communion today. We enjoyed making the new friends, too. Dad did a great job with making BBQ chicken, hot dogs, hamburgers, and pork steaks for the feast!
While we were on our long journey to have children, I promised God that if he would bless us with a child, I would teach my child how to be a good disciple of Jesus. I told him I would teach my child how to take care of the poor or the most vulnerable people in the world. There are so many things I want to teach them now, but we are working in baby steps. I think it will be somewhat easier as they get a little older. I try to point out acts of kindness and taking care of others as much as I can. But to be honest, just going to church can be difficult sometimes. I try to pick up one message or one important point at church each week, but it can be very challenging with a wiggly three (almost four) year old and a busy two year old. Eric and I have often thought about going to church separately or taking one child at a time and going to different masses, but I can not expect them to learn about Jesus and how to sit reverently at church if I don't take them regularly. I have seen so much improvement in both of them, and it gets better. (Joshua is enrolled in a special program through church this next year, and that will help him understand why we are trying to teach him the things we do, too.) So we are going to keep at it, and keep hoping for it to get a little better each week. And I do know it will.
My final thought is one thing I really love about each of my boys. And this is difficult because there are a million things to love about each one. I love how much Joshua talks and talks. When I was a little girl, the next door neighbor, Bill, called me Gabby because I talked so much. (Hard to imagine now, I know, but I guess I used to talk a lot more! :) Joshua narrates life and asks so many questions, it really makes you think. And I love how Luke loves to sing and dance. Even though we do not always know what he is singing (but we do more and more every day), we can often recognize his tune...Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star or the Itsy Bitsy Spider. Even his "Alleluia" will melt your heart. On to more adventures........
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